Chicago police were looking today for a dentist whose wife was fatally attacked near her South Side home Wednesday afternoon. The Cook County medical examiner's office said Judith Sanders, 52, of the 6700 block of South Constance Avenue, suffered multiple stab wounds and a gunshot wound to the head.

Police said they were notifying neighboring states about the search for Gregory Sanders, 51, identified by WGN-Ch. 9 as a well-known dentist. They said he was likely driving a Lexus sport-utility vehicle with Wisconsin plates.

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- LATEST NEWS UPDATE

PRISON PLAN A SWEETHEART DEAL FOR RYAN PAL

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Gov. George Ryan's decision to locate a new state women's prison in his home county of Kankakee could prove a windfall for one of his top supporters and fundraisers, Tony Perry. Acting at Ryan's behest as the area's point man in bidding for the new prison, Perry personally acquired options on the 120 acres on which the new prison will be built -- options that could bring him about $33,000 by his own account.

The deal could prove unusually lucrative for Perry: It's the first time in two decades that the state will bear the entire cost of private property for a new prison; in 26 previous projects, local communities have provided the land free or at a reduced price.

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- FROM THIS MORNING'S PAPER

COMED TO ANSWER CRITICAL BLACKOUT REPORT

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A day after an energy consultant warned the Illinois Commerce Commission that Commonwealth Edison's infrastructure problems could cause more blackouts this summer, ComEd gets a chance to present a formal response to the ICC this afternoon. The president of Pennsylvania-based Vantage Consulting Inc., Walter Drabinski, told the commission on Wednesday that, despite ComEd managers' improvements in maintenance over the last few months, "they are still going to have a system that is a year older."

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- FROM THIS MORNING'S PAPER

RACIST REFERENDUMS FACE CHALLENGE

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Richard Benedict Mayers of the western suburb of Berwyn has filed proposals for three referendums on the March Cook County primary ballot. The Inc. Column reports that Mayers is pushing constitutional amendments that would:

- Ban interracial marriage.

- Prohibit abortion of "healthy white babies."

- Send black prisoners "back to western Africa."

Chicago Ald. Joe Moore (49th), a candidate for the clerk of the Cook County Circuit Court, said he would file suit today to keep all three proposals off the ballot.

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CHA OVERHAUL UP FOR FINAL VOTE

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The Chicago Housing Authority board was set today to cast a decisive vote on a $1.5 billion plan to rebuild public housing. The program, still subject to approval by federal housing officials, calls for waivers of more than two dozen federal housing rules -- including one that has required younger disabled people be given access to housing otherwise designated for senior citizens.

After the CHA's chief executive officer, Phillip Jackson, explained that that rule has led to "little gangs running around in your buildings," a City Council committee backed the request for a waiver.

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- FROM THIS MORNING'S PAPER

BLOOD ALERT CONTINUES

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To increase a seasonally -- but critically -- low blood supply, the Chicago area's dominant source of blood products, LifeSource Blood Services, is appealing for donors. LifeSource said in a news release that it needs 1,500 donors a day for the next week to restore its "safety net," a three-day supply of blood.

Armed with 14 points from newly mended Toni Kukoc, the Bulls ended their 11-game losing streak with a 77-66 win over Washington. Their season record soars to 3-26.

In college basketball, Northwestern lost to Iowa, 58-52.

The Blackhawks host Calgary, 7:30 p.m. Full schedule in Sports.

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COMING UP ...

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The work of Andy Kaufman will be celebrated by friends, relatives and biographer Bill Zehme at the Museum of Broadcast Communications, 5:30 p.m.; or they can click in to the Webcast of the event at the museum's Web site, www.mbcnet.org. ... Violinist Rachel Barton plays the Chicago Cultural Center, 6:30 p.m.; also at the center: The "World in a Weekend" series spotlights Shanghai/Shenyang through Sunday. ... A Nobel Prize-winning expert on the ozone layer and the impact of man-made materials on the environment, Mario Molina of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, speaks on "The Science and Politics of Climate Change," 7:30 p.m. at the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy in Aurora. ... The Chicago Symphony Orchestra takes the stage at the Symphony Center, 8 p.m. ... Bailiwick Arts Center stages "The Deep Blue Sea," a drama about an ill-fated love affair; through Feb. 6. ... The Famous Door Theatre Company presents Harold Pinter's absurdist play "The Homecoming"; through March 5.